Cryptographic processors are used in secure devices, such as encrypting keypads and encrypting touch-sensitive displays, to ensure that data entered via the secure device is transmitted only in encrypted form when it leaves the secure device.
There are various requirements to be met for a secure device to be compliant with international security standards. One such standard is set by the PCI Security Standards Council.
One potential attack on a secure device is a side-on attack, which involves an attempt to probe a cryptographic processor from the side of the secure device rather than from the top or bottom of the secure device. Prior art secure devices have attempted to mitigate against such attacks by surrounding the cryptographic processor with a conducting mesh, and embedding the conducting mesh in epoxy. However, this approach has not been entirely successful, being unreliable, time consuming and relatively expensive.